Rosette Nebula

Pale Blue Dot, taken by Voyager 1 in 1990 as it left the Solar System, 3.7 billion miles away.

Source: https://imgur.com/Hc4lkLG

Not a Drill: SETI Is Investigating a Possible Extraterrestrial Signal From Deep Space

The implications are extraordinary and point to the possibility of a civilization far more advanced than our own.

GUYS. The future is now. 

Asteroid Crash Course!

Asteroids can be hazardous to life on Earth, but they also provide clues about the early solar system. Denton Ebel, curator in the Museum’s Division of Physical Sciences, explains how asteroids formed and the varying degrees of destruction they cause when they fall to Earth.

What Is An Asteroid?

Meteorite, Meteor: What’s the Difference?

Why Are There No Planets in the Asteroid Belt? 

What Were the Biggest Asteroids to Hit Earth?

Can Asteroids Be Deflected?

And don’t miss the videos, What Happens When Large Meteorites Fall to Earth?, and How Are Large Asteroids Tracked?

Antibiotic Resistance: Scientists Uncover the Secret Behind This Powerful Weapon

Of course, humans and bacteria are somewhat different. As a result, it’s no surprise that these tiny creatures transfer genes differently from humans and even plants.

Besides binary fission, where the genetic material is segregated equally into two daughter cells, bacteria also have another method of gene transfer—namely, horizontal gene transfer (HGT). HGT has long been known to be responsible for spreading unique traits in bacteria, especially antibiotic resistance. Though we’ve long known that it is able to exert a rather strong effect, the why (or how) has remained a mystery.

At least, until now.

Researchers from Oxford University have demonstrated, through mathematical modelling, that the secret is migration, whereby movement between communities of microbes greatly increases the chances of different species of bacteria being able to swap DNA and adopt new traits.

Read more & check the video at http://futurism.com/links/antibiotic-resistance-scientists-uncover-the-secret-behind-this-powerful-weapon/

Solar System: Things to Know This Week

Our solar system is huge, let us break it down for you. Here are a few things you should know this week: 

1. Closeup of a King

For the first time since it entered orbit around Jupiter in July, our Juno spacecraft has flown close to the king of planets—this time with its eyes wide open. During the long, initial orbit, Juno mission managers spent time checking out the spacecraft “from stem to stern,” but the science instruments were turned off as a precaution. During this latest pass, Juno’s camera and other instruments were collecting data the whole time. Initial reports show that all went well, and the team has released a new close-up view that Juno captured of Jupiter’s north polar region. We can expect to see more close-up pictures of Jupiter and other data this week.

+Check in with Juno

2. Getting Ready to Rocket

Our OSIRIS-REx mission leaves Earth next week, the first leg of a journey that will take it out to an asteroid called Bennu. The mission will map the asteroid, study its properties in detail, then collect a physical sample to send back home to Earth. The ambitious endeavor is slated to start off on Sept. 8.

+See what it takes to prep for a deep space launch

3. New Moon Rising

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has already mapped the entire surface of Earth’s moon in brilliant detail, but the mission isn’t over yet. Lunar explorers still have questions, and LRO is poised to help answer them.

+See what’s next for the mission

4. A Mock-Eclipse Now

We don’t have to wait until next year to see the moon cross in front of the sun. From its vantage point in deep space, our Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) sometimes sees just that. Such an event is expected on Sept. 1.

+See the latest sun pictures from SDO

5. Jupiter’s Cousins

Our galaxy is home to a bewildering variety of Jupiter-like worlds: hot ones, cold ones, giant versions of our own giant, pint-sized pretenders only half as big around. Astronomers say that in our galaxy alone, a billion or more such Jupiter-like worlds could be orbiting stars other than our sun. And we can use them to gain a better understanding of our solar system and our galactic environment, including the prospects for finding life.

Want to learn more? Read our full list of the 10 things to know this week about the solar system HERE. 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Astronomers Have a New Tool in the Search For Habitable Exoplanets

The quest for habitable alien worlds may get a whole lot easier. http://futurism.com/astronomers-have-a-new-tool-in-the-search-for-habitable-exoplanets/

Prototype Robotic Lunar Lander, Testing at Marshall Space Flight Center

Source: http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/388176main_0901812_full.jpg

The strange tale of the Snowflake Man

Wilson Bentley caused a flurry with his pioneering pictures of individual snowflakes, and his results are astonishing – so why was he seen as an oddball outsider?

The world is racing to build a moon base — here’s what it could look like

The European Space Agency just reminded the world that it wants to build a base on the moon by 2030, using 3-D printed parts made from materials found on the lunar surface. But the ESA has some stiff competition.

Women are better coders, research shows

Researchers from the computer science departments at California Polytechnic State University and North Carolina State University gathered data from nearly 1.4 million GitHub users, and the results are in: Women are better at writing code. The researchers also found proof of a specific bias.

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